(Yicai Global) Jan. 10 -- Shares in Shijing Environmental Technology lost ground today after the Chinese waste handling equipment maker said that it will invest CNY11.2 billion (USD1.7 billion) to build its first solar cell factory in order to expand its foothold in the rapidly growing photovoltaic sector.

Shijing [SHE:301030] closed down 2.7 percent at CNY41.96 (USD6.19). Earlier in the day it hit CNY45.68. The stock has gained nearly 30 percent in value over the past year.

The facility will have an annual capacity of 24 gigawatts and will be located in the Ningguo Economic and Tecnnological Development Zone in eastern Anhui province on a site of around half a square kilometer, Shijing said yesterday.

The project will help Shijing have a bigger presence in the PV industry and increase business scale, said Suzhou, eastern Jiangsu-based Shijing, which provides pollution control equipment to solar firms, but has not until now been engaged in the industrial chain.

The first stage of the factory, which is likely to be ready by November this year, will have a yearly output of 18 GW and cost CNY7.5 billion (USD1.1 billion), Shijing said. Once in production, it will realize CNY20 billion in annual sales. The second and final phase will start once the first phase is ready, it added.

As part of the country’s carbon peaking and neutrality goals, the PV project is likely to get support from the local government, said Shijing.

Founded in 2005, Shijing logged a 75.7 percent jump in net profit in the first three quarters last year from the same period a year earlier to CNY58.3 million (USD8.6 million), while revenue more than doubled to CNY1 billion.

Editor: Kim Taylor